The Voice s Kelsea Ballerini Says Blake Shelton Was Wrong About Ruthless Adam Levine
Kelsea Ballerini is learning not to trust everything that comes out of Blake Shelton’s mouth.

On the Monday, February 24, episode of The Voice, Ballerini, 31, took a break from the blind auditions to tell fellow coach Adam Levine how great it is to work alongside him.

“Blake really made me nervous,” she said. “He was like, ‘Adam’s tough. Sometimes he’s mean. He’s competitive. He’s ruthless.’ He was wrong. You’re lovely. You’re nice.”

While Levine, 45, appreciated the kind words, he had a couple of theories as to why Shelton, 48, would say such a thing.

“I feel like Blake was hazing you when he did that,” the Maroon 5 frontman speculated. “He’s mean. He’s not a nice guy.”

The Voice s Kelsea Ballerini Says Blake Shelton Was Wrong About Ruthless Adam Levine
Jason Davis/Getty Images
Shelton and Levine helped launch The Voice in 2011 with Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green. They continued to work together on the first 16 seasons until Levine chose to briefly step away to pursue other projects. (Shelton also left the show after season 23.)

The duo often poked fun at each other and got competitive over whose team was better than the other. Deep down, however, the pair’s bromance was too evident to deny. (In May 2023, Levine chose to speak at Shelton’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony.)

After Ballerini made it clear that she thinks Sheton is a nice guy, Levine decided to have a little fun at his former coworker’s expense.

The Voice s Kelsea Ballerini Says Blake Shelton Was Wrong About Ruthless Adam Levine
Trae Patton/NBC
“He’s not a nice person. If he’s being nice to you, that means he’s lying,” Levine said. “The one bad part about shooting this season of The Voice is that I have to sit in this filthy chair.”

As Season 27 of The Voice continues, all four coaches — including John Legend and Michael Bublé — are working hard to build their teams during the blind auditions.

Although it’s Ballerini’s first season as an official coach, her costars have plenty of experience fighting to find the best voice.

Despite a five-year hiatus from the show, Levine came back and has already secured several impressive singers who earned a four-chair turn during auditions.

“I was definitely curious to see and feel what it was going to be like,” the “Sugar” singer told NBC before the season began. “It’s been a while since I’ve been on and I honestly thought maybe it was time. I just thought I’d come back and give it another chance.”

The Voice airs on NBC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. Stream old episodes anytime on Peacock.